Hostages in Philippines siege forced to fight, loot, become sex slaves: Army
MARAWI CITY, Philippines: Civilians held hostage by militants occupying a southern Philippine city have been forced by their captors to loot homes, take up arms against government troops and serve as sex slaves for rebel fighters, the army said on Tuesday.
Citing accounts of seven residents of Marawi City who either escaped or were rescued, the military said some hostages were forced to convert to Islam, carry wounded fighters to mosques, and marry militants of the Maute group loyal to Daesh.
“So they are being forced to be sex slaves, forced to destroy the dignity of these women,” military spokesman Jo-Ar Herrera told a news conference.
“So this is what is happening inside, this is very evident ... these are evil personalities.”
Their accounts, which could not be immediately verified, are the latest harrowing stories to come out of a conflict zone that the military has been unable to penetrate for five weeks, as well-armed and organized rebels fight off soldiers with sniper rifles and rocketpropelled grenades.
Some escapees say bodies of residents have been left in the streets, some for weeks, and civilians are distressed by government air strikes and artillery bombardments that have reduced parts of Marawi to rubble.
The protracted seizure has worried the region about the extent the Daesh agenda may have gained traction in the southern Philippines, which is more used to banditry, piracy and separatism than radical Islam.
The rebels’ combat capability, access to heavy weapons and use of foreign fighters has raised fears in the mainly Catholic country that the Marawi battle could just be the start of a wider campaign, and be presented by Maute as a triumph to aid their recruitment efforts.
Heavy clashes broke out on Tuesday as the battle entered its sixth week, with intense bombings by planes on a shrinking rebel zone.
The government ruled out negotiations after reports that Abdullah Maute, one of two brothers who formed the militant group carrying their name, wanted to trade a Catholic priest hostage for his parents arrested earlier this month.
The military said on Saturday Abdullah Maute had fled.
Taking advantage of a short truce to mark the Eid Al-Fitr holiday, eight Muslim leaders met briefly on Sunday with Maute. The Philippine Daily Inquirer said he had asked for his father, Cayamora Maute, and influential businesswoman mother, Farhana Maute, to be freed, in a swap for Father Teresito “Chito” Soganub.
But Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said deals with militants were against government policy, and anyone trying to bargain had no authority to do so.
“The local religious leader-led talks with terrorists last Sunday was one not sanctioned,” Abella told reporters.
“Any demands made inside, therefore, hold no basis. Let us remind the public, the gravity of the terrorists and their supporters’ offenses is immense.”
The military’s public relations machine has been insisting that the rebel leadership was crumbling, saying top commanders had escaped or were killed in action, and the group was fraught with infighting, even executing their own men for wanting to surrender.
Military officers, however, accept they lack solid proof of such developments and were working to verify intelligence reports.
The army said there were reported sightings of the departure from the battle of Isnilon Hapilon, Daesh’s anointed Southeast Asian “emir,” which Abella said showed he was not committed to his cause.
“It would be a clear sign of his cowardice,” Abella said of Hapilon.
“It may only be a matter of time before they disintegrate.”
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is alive and well and experiencing no health problems, the government said on Tuesday, amid concerns about his disappearance from the public eye for unusually long periods this month.
Known for a busy schedule and lengthy speeches often several times a day, the 72-year-old Duterte’s low profile has fueled rumors he is in declining health and that the government is trying to keep that under wraps. He was last seen in public a week ago.
What has created most intrigue is Duterte’s absence during what is the biggest crisis of his year-old presidency, as the military battles for a sixth week to defeat Daeshlinked rebels currently occupying Marawi City on his home island of Mindanao.
“First and foremost, he is alive and well, he is very well, he’s just busy doing what he needs to do,” Ernesto Abella told reporters.